Press feeding device



E. o. MCELHANY 3,070,206

Dec. 25, 1962 PRESS FEEDING DEVICE Filed March 15, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 m Fm INVENTOR. EARL 0. MC ELHANY BY a United States Patent i 3,0763% PRESS FEEDENG DEVICE Earl 0. MeElhany, Harrisonville, Md, assignor to Remington Arms Company, Inc., Bridgeport, Conn, a corporation of Delaware Filed Mar. 15, 1961, Ser. No. 95,927 2 Claims. (Cl. 19824) This invention relates to a device for feeding components to a draw press and has particular relationship to feeding cartridge case draw cups which are received in oriented end-to-end relationship from a delivery tube through a channel in side-by-side relationship into a position over a draw die and beneath a draw punch. Obviously such a feed mechanism may be used for other purposes such as delivering cup shaped components to a filling station but its greatest use is with draw pieces and it is so illustrated.

Functionally similar devices are relatively common in the prior art but such devices have suffered from the fact that in the elongated channel portion of the feed mechanism, where the components stand on end in parallel side-by-side relationship, the channel must be kept full or some of the components will tip over and be fed long axis horizontal rather than long axis vertical. This is apt to cause tool smash-ups and is particularly trouble some in feeding second and third draw cups which are long in relation to their diameter. In starting up such a device it is necessary to manually completely fill each of the feed channels before the press can be started and fed automatically.

I have discovered that I can cure these defects of the prior art feed mechanism by lining one side of the feed channel with a resilient deformable substance, such as neoprene sponge or similar material, and positioning the lined edge of the channel to have an interference fit with components positioned between it and the opposite side of the feed channel.

The objects of this invention are to provide a feed mechanism which does not have to be pro-filled with components in starting the work and one in which the components being fed will remain in upright side-by-side relationship even though there be a gap in the column or other similar disturbance of normal feeding.

The exact nature of the invention, as well as other objects and advantages thereof, will become apparent from consideration of the following specification, refering to the attached drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the feed mechanism assembled on the bed of a conventional draw press;

FIGS. 2 and 3 are side elevational views, partially in section, showing one of the feed rail assemblies of the invention at two different points in the operating cycle;

FIG. 4 is a top plan view, partially in section, corresponding to FIG. 2.

Referring to the drawing by characters of reference, there is illustrated in FIG. 1 a conventional duplex draw press having a die supporting bed 1, a frame structure 2 and a reciprocating gate 3 which supports a pair of draw punches 4 which are adapted to pick up cup shaped workpieces and force them downwardly through a draw die, not shown.

The feed mechanism receives draw pieces from a feed hopper which orients them and feeds them closed end first through feed tubes 5 in end-to-end relationship. These 3,7fl,2ilfi Patented Dec. 25, 1962 feed tubes terminate in tubular delivery bushings 6 which are positioned to deliver the lowermost components in the tube into the receiving end of a delivery channel 7 defined between two elongated right angle members 8 and 9 secured by their base flanges to the press bed 1.

A feed shaft 10 is supported on the press bed 1 in suitable bearings 11 and given an oscillatory motion by a feed link 12 actuated from the press gate. The feed shaft 10 is provided with a pair of depending crank arms 13 which are each received in a notch 14 in a corresponding feed slide 15. This notch can be provided with a spring 16 and plunger 17 bearing on the end of the crank arm so that on actuation of the crank the feed slide will be yieldingly moved toward the draw punch and positively retracted. Preferably the stroke of the feed slides will be somewhat greater than the diameter of one of the workpieces being fed and the slides will reciprocate between one position in which the feed slide has pushed the bottom component delivered by the feed bushing forward into the feed channel and the following component rests on top of the feed slide (FIG. 3) and a position in which the feed slide has been retracted clear of the feed bushing to permit the following component to drop into the feed channel (see FIG. 2). Obviously, continued oscillation of the feed shaft will result in feeding a succession of components side-by-side into the feed channel. When the channel is filled, the endmost component will be stopped by a channel block 18 in a position centered under the draw punch. The yielding nature of the connection to the crank arm avoids a smash-up in the case of an obstruction in the channel.

The heart of the invention lies in the provision of a yieldable resilient facing 19 on one of the angles 8 defining the feed channel. The facing 19 is preferably of a material like neoprene or other oil resistant synthetic elastomer preferably in sponge form, and may be cemented to the angle by any suitable cement. The angle having the facing is so positioned with respect to the other angle that a firm frictional grip will be exerted on any component positioned in the feed channel. Thus, in starting up the press, components may be fed from the feed tubes without regard to preloading the feed channel, and the components cannot tip over or become deranged in the channel. Similarly, if damaged or improper components must be removed from the feed channel, this also may be done without interfering with orderly feeding.

Variations in the construction and utilization of the invention are obviously a possibility, and I consider my invention to be limited only by the scope of the claims appended hereto.

I claim:

1. A device for feeding components to a work station comprising a stationary, elongated feed channel in which said components may stand on one end in parallel sideby-side relation, means at one end of said channel to sequentially feed components to said channel including reciprocating means slidably mounted at said one end of said channel, means to actuate said reciprocating means to advance said components in said channel, a stationary, continuous, resilient means at one side of said channel spaced a predetermined distance from the other side of said channel in order to provide an interference fit between said components and said channel thus permitting incremental advancement of said components in said channel but preventing said components from tipping over in said channel, yieldable spring means operatively positioned between said reciprocating means and said actuating means to function as a safety device to permit said actuating means to complete its cycle and avoid a smashup in case of an obstruction in said channel.

2. A device as recited in claim 1 wherein said yieldable spring means comprises an axially-extending slot in said reciprocating means, a plunger positioned in said slot and a spring to bias said plunger away from said slot into a abutting engagement with said actuating means, said actuating means acting through said plunger and spring to move said reciprocating means along said elongated feed channel.

References Qited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

